Our lead strategists are active thought leaders and field practitioners in business strategy, marketing, branding, public relations (PR), and leadership develoment. Some of their thoughts made it into books, or academic journals and book chapters. Here are some books from our strategists.
The dot Zen series has a new cousin!
Tough Times, Great PR – dot Zen 3.0: Building brands and publicity for the 21st century
Brands large and small face the toughest times in the 21st century, with global pandemics and conflicts causing roadblocks and downturns. How then, can brands bootstrap to win in the war for branding and publicity?
Table of contents
- 4 key steps to harnessing public relations in a recession
- Is your business ready for PR?
- Engage your PR at the C-suite level
- 3 critical tips for spokespersons
- Is your C-suite merely non-player characters (NPC) in the media?
- 5 crippling PR mistakes to avoid
- Hunt for PR help only when a crisis hits?
- Taking “journalese” out of our writing
- Feeling let down by your media monitoring service?
- Drilling down deeper into PR measurement
- 4 critical tips for marketers facing a deep decline of the “influencer” industry
- 5 critical crisis management and communication tips
- 3 tips to build a brand in a crisis
- Future of PR in the 21st century is the bottom line
- Crises may not be what you think – be prepared
- Don’t try to bury bad news on a Friday
- Physics and the art of crisis management
- Why all businesses need PR
- 6 tips on handling difficult questions
- Speak directly and simply for impact – avoid double negatives
- The 5 Cs of speechwriting for the C-suite
- Employer branding through PR
- Recommendations for building lasting brands through heritage and tenure
- Future of marketing may not be about personalization
- Old brands – 7 tips on keeping a brand going
- 4 tips to succeed in cookie-less marketing
- 3 public relations (PR) recommendations post-crisis
- Communications and human resources – synergy and separate
- 5-prong CELLS™ approach to successful Asia Pacific market entry
- What a simple word game can inspire us to do in marketing and PR
- 6 Reasons Why PR is the best way to build brands and win customers
- 4 ways to build social proof to boost your PR
- Authentic social media to the rescue in a crisis
- Beyond mainstream media pitching and going online
- 8 recommendations for building your own in-house studio for audio and video
- Digital resilience for communication
- Digital tools for communicators
- When tech goes down, the show must go on
- 5 steps to create NFTs for brands and asset protection
- 4 tips of AI prompt engineering for PR
- E.S.G. your life to sanity
BUY it now!
Tough Times, Great PR
Dot Zen 3.0: Building Brands and Publicity for the 21st Century
Buy on Barnes & Noble (bn.com) now!
Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement any existing business large and emerging, and for new startups to learn from. Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement businesses large and emerging. Public relations (PR) builds brands, nurtures sales and opportunities, and protects the reputation of businesses. PR is a sustained effort nurtured by the C-suite, international communications and external specialist partners. Following the good reception of the two earlier Dot Zen books, this book continues a journey through the years of a global pandemic, trade wars and conflicts, with a three decades old PR and strategy consulting firm staying afloat and helping clients grow together through the crises with good publicity, brand building, and reputation management. What were the lessons learned during these crises? How can we benefit from them to nurture and build brands for the long haul? This book serves as an anthology of easy-to-read pieces to stir the imagination with ideas for the C-suite executives and business leaders, peppered with calligraphy and little “Dot Zen Moment” thoughts throughout the book.
Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement any existing business large and emerging, and for new startups to learn from. Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement businesses large and emerging. Public relations (PR) builds brands, nurtures sales and opportunities, and protects the reputation of businesses. PR is a sustained effort nurtured by the C-suite, international communications and external specialist partners. Following the good reception of the two earlier Dot Zen books, this book continues a journey through the years of a global pandemic, trade wars and conflicts, with a three decades old PR and strategy consulting firm staying afloat and helping clients grow together through the crises with good publicity, brand building, and reputation management. What were the lessons learned during these crises? How can we benefit from them to nurture and build brands for the long haul? This book serves as an anthology of easy-to-read pieces to stir the imagination with ideas for the C-suite executives and business leaders, peppered with calligraphy and little “Dot Zen Moment” thoughts throughout the book.
Mentioned at various media outlets, including Yahoo, New York Tech, MSN, etc.
We published the follow-on book to the first Dot Zen book in 2003 – Dot Zen 2.0!
The book has broad categories of topics:
Strategy and leadership– startup mentality, retiring products, the “last mover advantage”, marks of a true leader, the myth of uniqueness, and work ethics.
Human capital and development– recruiting the best marketing people, structured and unstructured learning, social media and recruitment, and sieving out toxic employees.
Customer service and sales– prevention of lapses, customer service myths, managing and developing retail staffers, service failures and recovery, social media and customer service.
Branding and reputation– good brand names, packaging and industrial design, and brand journalism.
Marketing– marketing tips from pop sensations, strategies, analogies to art and paintings, optimizing paid, earned and owned media.
Public relations– humanizing of brands, going beyond traditional PR, trends of PR, crisis prepardness and communication, and spokesperson development.
Social media and the Web– website optimization, content targeting, content development tips, graphics for the Web, responsive websites, building social media communities, business blogging, analytics, and owned media.
Mobile, video and audio– AR (augmented reality), QR, video content, mobile apps, and video journalism.
Price: US$29.92. 254 pages. Shipping costs calculated separately. Out of print. You may still purchase from Barnes&Noble.
Book launch talk (a snippets video)
Books we wrote in the past (out of print)
Here are some books and multimedia materials we have authored in the past, from business leadership, service quality, health, etc. Some were bestselling books and widely acclaimed by readers and reviewed by mass media (including international media). Enquire if you need archival copies (if still available).
Dot ZEN (Book)
Briefly: Seamus Phan and Ter Hui Peng joined hands to write a practical and useful book for entrepreneurs and managers to better manage the business processes, marketing, branding, Public Relations (PR), human resource management (HRM), and the use of the Internet. Highly rated by top business consultants and experts and widely covered in the media! First print run sold out and in reprint version To find out more, visit DotZen.com. ISBN: 981-04-5645-X. Price: US$11. 200 pages.
This Body This Life (Book)
Briefly: Seamus Phan, and his brother CJ, recognized bodybuilding champion, joined hands to author this book on holistic health, nutrition, proper dieting, exercise, fitness, and longevity. Very successful book and well received by readers and the media (including international media). To find out more, visit ThisBodyThisLife.com. ISBN: 981-04-5646-8. Price: US$16.95. 260 pages.
From Employee to Entrepreneur (VideoCD)
Briefly: Seamus Phan, knowledge entrepreneur, showed his audience in a LIVE session, on how to succeed with skills, knowledge, and expertise. Seamus showed that it is possible to startup a business based on the entrepreneur’s expertise, with little startup capital. ISBN: 981-05-1187-6. Price: US$68. Around 40 minutes.
Media Training Primer for Speakers and Trainers (VideoCD)
Briefly: Seamus Phan, TV and radio commentator and journalist, spoke to an audience of professional speakers and trainers LIVE, on how to succeed with media communication, media relations, and on-air appearances. ISBN: 981-05-1188-4. Price: US$68. Around 40 minutes.
Using the Internet as a Service Quality Weapon 2001 (VideoCD/DVD)
Briefly: Singapore pioneer in customer service and the Internet Seamus Phan spoke on how to leapfrog your competition, no matter how large you are (or how small) or what industry you are in, with Internet technologies. A fast-paced, engaging and Asia-centric training delivery. ISBN: 981-04-4557-1. Price: US$188. Around 60 minutes.
E-Business (Audio CD)
Briefly: Seamus Phan hosted a segment on national radio. He was the first Internet and technology speaker to host that segment (previously for business speakers only). In this audio CD, you can hear clips on how to develop an e-business strategy, components necessary for a good infrastructure, Internet security, mobile commerce, and streaming media techniques. ISBN: 981-04-4556-3. Price: US$68. Around 40 minutes.
Service Quality: The Enlightened Approach (Book/eBook)
Briefly: Rather than stick to motivational approaches (“quick-patchers or fixes”), the author Seamus Phan uses a synergistic approach of motivation and implementation. The program has been implemented in multi-million projects, based on the author’s copyrighted work in the late 1980s. ISBN: 981-00-6457-8. Price: US$18 (1995 first print edition), or US$18 for digital version (1999).
Internet Webmaster Logbook (eBook)
Briefly: Seamus Phan takes an in-depth look at how he helped to set up various Internet and Intranet web sites and servers in Asia for Human Resource Management and Development (HRM/HRD), without burning a deep hole in your budget. Past Amazon.com Bestseller (under the Webmaster category). ISBN: 981-00-7648-7. Price: US$39.90 for digital version (1999).
ISO 9000 Primer (eBook)
Briefly: This work makes it easy for small businesses to quickly understand ISO 9000 without the complex jargon, and follow through Seamus’ examples in a sample manual. It includes templates for readers to deploy in their small businesses. The product includes PDF, eBook and Palm DOC. Templates in PDF for practical reasons. Featured on national radio! ISBN: 981-04-2532-5. Price: US$29 per eBook product on CDROM.
ISO 14000 Primer (eBook)
Briefly: This work makes it easy for small businesses to quickly understand ISO 14000 without the complex jargon, and follow through Seamus’ examples in a sample manual. It includes templates for readers to deploy in their small businesses. The product includes PDF, eBook and Palm DOC. Templates in PDF for practical reasons. Featured on national radio! ISBN: 981-04-2531-7. Price: US$29 per eBook product on CDROM.
Visit our lead author’s little corner on Amazon Author Central.
Dot Zen 2.0 – On Marketing, Social Media, Technology, Public Relations, Human Capital & Leadership
A business management primer based on field experience of Seamus Phan and contributions from Ter Hui Peng. This book is an extension to the original Dot Zen book published in 2003. This book carries more insights and experience on leadership, human capital, branding, customer service, sales, marketing, public relations, social media, mobile apps, and interactive multimedia, with a focus on field-tested experience and tactics. This is targeted at small business owners, business executives, and marketers who want to build their brands in the marketplace.
More info →Tough Times, Great PR
Buy on Barnes & Noble (bn.com) now!
Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement any existing business large and emerging, and for new startups to learn from. Tough times call for tough measures, and these lessons can be good foundations to supplement businesses large and emerging. Public relations (PR) builds brands, nurtures sales and opportunities, and protects the reputation of businesses. PR is a sustained effort nurtured by the C-suite, international communications and external specialist partners. Following the good reception of the two earlier Dot Zen books, this book continues a journey through the years of a global pandemic, trade wars and conflicts, with a three decades old PR and strategy consulting firm staying afloat and helping clients grow together through the crises with good publicity, brand building, and reputation management. What were the lessons learned during these crises? How can we benefit from them to nurture and build brands for the long haul? This book serves as an anthology of easy-to-read pieces to stir the imagination with ideas for the C-suite executives and business leaders, peppered with calligraphy and little “Dot Zen Moment” thoughts throughout the book.
More info →